Historical meaning of the battle of Atlakh in the fate of Kazakhs

The interests of two warlike empires, as the scissors, clashed-crossed on the Kazakh land. The decisive battle between the armies of the empire Tan (medieval China) and the Arabs, which happened in 751, stood out. 

The battle occurred near Atlakh city. At those times, Alakh was the city of the Turgeshes, and it was situated on the bank of the Talas river. Internal conflicts destroyed the Turgesh kaganate which was divided into black and red ones, and the Chinese commanders, also their allies Koreans decided to use that fully. The commander-in-chief of the Chinese army by origin a Korean Gau Shiyanzhi with a numerous troop as the mountain mudflow came to the city of Talas, in which the Turgesh army was surrounded. 

The son of the ruler of Shash city Ziyad ibn-Salikh, whose father was killed at the attack of Shash by the general Gau Shiyanzhi, brought the Arabic troops to Talas, next to Atlakh. The tribes of the Karluks took the waiting position, and did not interfere with the conflict yet. By the moment of the battle from both sides almost 100 th. warriors who lined up at the upcoming field of battle gathered. 

The great battle, having begun did not finish in one day, but continued up to five years, the warring did not feel sorry for their lives, as if understanding the historical meaning of the battle. On both sides there were uncountable died people. At the happy for the Arabic-Turkic troops moment the army of the Tang empire was defeated. 

At the peak of the battle the Karluks after forgetting about the internal conflicts with the Turgeshes and other tribes came to battle against the old enemy of the steppe people who stood out to be the Chinese and hit the ground flank of the Tang army of the general Gau Shiyanzhi, that led to victory. 

The battle of Atlakh and great victory in it played in the subsequent history of the people of Central Asia and Kazakhstan a great role, dissolved the joint of numerous conflicts, served the example of the unification of the consanguineous people. Besides, this battle led to the situation when the Chinese expansion was ceased and from that side for many centuries the threat of attacks was prevented. 

The victory in the battle of Atlakh has at least two deep historical meanings: 

1. The commander-in-chief of the Tang empire General Gau Shiyanzhi hardly rescued alive in this battle, and since than the leg of the Chinese soldier did not set foot on the secular Kazakh land. Central Asia and Kazakhstan stood up for their independence. After getting rid of the Chinese conquerors, our lands preserved their freedom till today. On the contrary, it is not known what way the world history could choose.  

2. There can be multiple interpretations, but in any case even by the spread of Islam and disappearance of the Old Turkic written culture in the Kazakh steppe, which was replaced by the Arabic writing and grammar, our people joined in the Arabic culture, and through it to the world one, by becoming its component. The Turkic people through the Islamic (Arabic) culture were able to reach wider horizons, one of the significant results of which became the emergence of such a global thinker as Al-Farabi. He was an outstanding scientist, philosopher and poet called the “Second teacher” after Aristotle. Another great figure of the Muslim Renaissance became the great scientist-doctor, who turned out to be one of the founders of the canons of the world medicine Ibn Sina (Avicenna). Apart from them, the whole series of great thinkers of the Turkic origin Makhmud Kashgari, Yusup Balasaguni, translator and composer of the sacred book of the Muslims, who wrote and systematized the hadiths (chapters) of the Koran Al-Bukhari, during life recognized the saint Ahmad Yasawi and many others. Majority of outstanding thinkers, scientists, poets and writers, one of whom was a great Kazakh poet Abay Kunanbayev, penetrated the best from the Arabic culture, literature and art; all of them were influenced by the gracious aura of the Muslim world perception. The historical truth is in that. Certainly, the Arabic conquests did not go without trace for the Old Turkic culture, they changed a lot in the life of the nomad. However, according to the common-sense reasoning there was more use than harm. 

It is needy to give a grant to the battle of Atlakh and honor the memory of the warriors, who gave away their lives for our freedom and independence, for out possibility to see all that from the historical past.

In 2001, in the first year of the new millennium the battle of Atlakh turned 1250 years. And we — descendants of those warriors, fighting in that great and decisive battle which brought victory and celebrate that occasion as the national holiday.